Why we built Fix or Hire.

Most home repair advice online comes from one of two places, and both have a built-in bias problem. Local trade professionals have a financial incentive to recommend a service call—even for a five-minute fix—because that's how they earn a living. Generic DIY blogs, on the other hand, often push ahead with instructions regardless of whether the repair is actually safe for an average homeowner to attempt, because a completed how-to article gets more clicks than a cautious "call a professional" recommendation.

We ran into this gap firsthand. While researching common home repairs, we spoke with several technicians who were candid that recommending a DIY fix would cost them a service call—understandably, that's their livelihood. That reluctance is exactly why we think there's room for a source that has no financial stake in which way you decide.

What Fix or Hire actually is

We're an independent research project, not a contractor, a lead-generation service, or a trade marketplace. We don't have a network of local pros we route your information to, and we don't get paid when you decide to hire someone. Every guide is built the same way: by researching how the repair actually works, cross-referencing manufacturer documentation and established home-repair references, and being honest about where the line sits between "safe for most homeowners" and "this needs a licensed professional."

We're not licensed tradespeople ourselves, and we don't claim to be. Our guides are built from manufacturer service documentation, established DIY and home-repair references, general safety and building-code guidance, and informal conversations with technicians about what actually goes wrong most often and why. Where a repair genuinely requires a professional—because of gas, main electrical panels, structural risk, or specialized tools—we say so plainly, rather than stretching a guide to cover something it shouldn't.

What we're not

• We're not a contractor directory or lead-gen service—we don't sell your information to local pros.
• We're not sponsored by tool or parts brands to recommend specific products.
• We're not trying to talk you into DIY-ing everything—plenty of our guides recommend hiring a pro, and we mean it every time we say it.

For the specifics of how we evaluate cost, time, and safety risk for each repair, see our Methodology page. If you've spotted something inaccurate, or you don't see your repair listed yet, we'd genuinely like to hear about it—use the Contact page or suggest a guide.